Uriah Hall getting more comfortable with fame 'TUF 17' has brought him

PORTLAND, Ore. – For a guy who once hid from well-wishers in a bar’s bathroom, Uriah Hall seemed pretty comfortable in the spotlight.

“What’s up Portland!” he shouted to a packed house at the Roseland Theater, which this past Saturday hosted the 70th event of Northwest promotion Full Contact Fighting Federation, co-founded by Chael Sonnen.

Hall (7-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC) attended the event along with Sonnen, who coached Hall on “The Ultimate Fighter 17″ and invited him to his gym after filming wrapped.

The show’s promoter, Kevin Keeney, nudged Hall into the cage for a little between-round publicity, and while a pair of fighters getting ready for the next three minutes barely registered his presence, he got a hearty cheer from the crowd.

Afterward, a would-be fighter peppered him with questions about training. A young man with blond hair and a press pass asked for a photo, as did others looking for a picture with the man who delivered one of the most shocking finishes in the history of the reality show.

Hall’s wheel-kick knockout of Adam Cella in the 17th season’s third episode brought him to this place, and while attention still makes him uneasy, he’s beginning to embrace it.

“I got a lot more comfortable,” he told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “I spoke to Chael, and he was like, ‘Don’t even worry about it.'”

Sonnen, who meets light heavyweight champ Jon Jones at UFC 159, is no stranger to the spotlight. Hall, though, never thought people would approach him for autographs and photos. Before the reality show, his idea of public speaking was teaching martial arts classes.

Now, he’s something of a celebrity.

“Sometimes, it gets a little weird, because I want to be a regular guy,” he said. “I guess after that show, it can’t happen.”

As the show progresses, Hall’s image continues to evolve. Whether that’s a good or bad thing depends on your interpretation of what’s good for business in the fight game.

Hall, who has yet to fight in the reality show tournament’s semifinals, is taking the role of pariah as he isolates himself from team members, whose awe has been replaced by suspicion and, sometimes, disdain. An argument in the sixth episode results in Hall calling Cella’s girlfriend a derogatory name. Hall, who spends time with both teams, says people are bullying him into playing the bad guy.

Hall recently complained on Facebook about the show’s editing. During the interview, he shied away from attacking his portrayal, but said his behavior on the show was a natural reaction to his circumstances.

“In a situation where you get bullied, you’re forced to put yourself in a position where you protect yourself, and it happens automatically,” he said. “Stuff can just lash out. It could be viewed or portrayed as somebody who has issues. It’s not f—ing issues. That’s just going through s–t and having to deal with it. It’s called being a human being. And I did what I had to do.

“If I had to take anything back, probably the only thing I would have to apologize for is Adam’s girlfriend. But it was not shown to what made me say that. Look at a fight. If somebody throws a punch, you throw a punch back. I’m not going to attack you if you don’t attack me.”

Hall, however, doesn’t feel the need to apologize for his mindset when he arrived on the show. He said he wasn’t there to make friends but to become a better fighter and secure a spot in the UFC by winning the tournament.

“People say I distanced myself,” he said. “I kind of had to because it’s not ‘The Ultimate Friends.’ It’s ‘The Ultimate Fighter.’ We can laugh, but I might have to fight you. Handling all those emotions, maybe some of these guys can do it, but I had my head on top of my shoulders when I got there. I was focused.

“Look at the eagle, for example. It’s a different type of bird. It flies at a different altitude, so it distances itself. When you’re at that level, it’s hard to get there, and I was at that level, so maybe some people saw me as a threat.

“Maybe some people saw me as a d—–bag. I don’t know, but the mindset that I had was to do whatever I can to become an Ultimate Fighter. If you look at that as a bad thing, then I guess f— you.”

Hall said he’s on good terms with his former teammates. One of them, Luke Barnatt, is training alongside him with Sonnen and also attended the event this past Saturday.

Observers believe Hall could be an out-of-the-gate star when the show concludes next month in Las Vegas at The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale, and the reception he received at the regional show certainly bolsters that theory.

Hall, though, said his goal remains the same. In other words, he’s not here for the camera time.

“I’m a martial artist trying to get better at one of the toughest competitions out there,” he said.

Catch new episodes of “The Ultimate Fighter 17: Team Jones vs. Team Sonnen” every Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET on FX. MMAjunkie.com recaps each episode of the reality series.

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